Soulmates
by Kris Ice
Summary: Jou reads something that upsets him, Seto reasures him in an unique way.


A/N: This version edited for explicit content. See my profile for my homepage which contains the original.

Title: Soul Mates  
Author: Kris Ice  
Pairing: SetoxJou  
Beta: SilverDream

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh or any characters associated with it.

Summary: Something Jou reads upsets him, and Seto reassures him in a unique way.

It was his lover's stillness that caught his eye. He had expected to find the blond in the living room, not the library. Jounochi was sitting in front of the computer in the library, unmoving. Seto blinked as he turned to watch Jou for a moment, but the other young man still didn't move. He frowned; his lover was never still. Like the golden retriever he resembled, Jou was always a bundle of energy. It wasn't until he walked closer that he noticed the ragged breathing. Worried, Seto stepped closer, still unable to see what was on the screen. "Jou?"

Jou blinked, hurriedly wiping his eyes before glancing over his shoulder with a guilty look. "Yeah? You need the computer?"

Seto shook his head, taking a couple more steps to place a hand on Jou's shoulder. "You know I use the one in my office. What's wrong?"

The blond shrugged and shut down the browser before Seto could see what he had been reading. "Nothin', just got something in my eye is all." He looked away, knowing that Seto wouldn't believe such a lame lie. He offered his lover a grateful smile when Seto didn't press but told him that it was time for dinner.

Some hours later, Seto slid into the seat in front of the library computer. He was disgusted at himself for doing this while Jou slept. It made him feel that he didn't trust his lover. He did trust Jou, but he wanted to know what had upset him. That wasn't Jou's "I just read a sad story," crying face. That expression was one he had only seen once before when Yugi's appendix had burst while they were out of town and Jou had learned that his friend had almost died. It was an expression of despair, one that tore at Seto's heart like nothing else ever had or ever would. And he was determined to find out what had caused his lover such pain.

It didn't take long to find out which sites Jou had visited. The blond almost never bothered to clean out the history folder. Still, finding the site had turned out to be the easy part. The site was a message board for young lovers. Some of the topics caused him to chuckle, but a few actually caught his interest; such as the one where people were asking for advice in making their first time satisfying to both. Wincing at the memory of their almost disastrous first time, Seto almost wished that they had had some of the advice that had been posted. Especially since some of it was geared toward homosexual couples. Not that he'd actually admit to anyone but Jou that he had needed help. He was just grateful that Jou had been as inexperienced as he was and that they had been able to help each other through it. It wasn't until he reached the end of the page that he discovered the last link that Jou had clicked on. It turned out to be a discussion on whether or not soul mates existed.

Some time later, Seto leaned back in the chair, murder and mayhem on his mind. He wondered if the woman who had posted that comment realized just how much her words could hurt others.

_A story that I was told some years ago explained the existence of soul mates to me. I want to share that story with you. An extremely long time ago, people were both male and female. But these people were loners and rarely got together. The gods worried that the people may die out. So, to insure that they wouldn't, the gods separated each person into two bodies, one male and one female, and each soul into two pieces, on for each body. Each half would be driven to find the other, searching throughout each lifetime until they could meet. These two would be soul mates. Homosexuals can never be with their soul mate because they have chosen someone of the same gender. But the worse thing is that not only have they deprived themselves of the chance to know and love their soul mate, but they have also denied their soul mate their love. I feel that this, above all else, makes homosexuality wrong._

For a moment, he contemplated hunting down "LightAngel" and show her why no one messed with his family, but he hesitated, pulling back. He thought for a moment before clicking a link and starting to type.

Jou stared out the window, it was almost dawn and Seto hadn't come back. When he'd woken an hour before, Seto's side of the bed had still been warm. He sighed, wondering if his lover had decided to get some work done before taking the day off. His lips twitched upward into a sad smile. He sincerely hoped that Seto hadn't forgotten that he'd promised that they could leave today to spend a week in New York with his sister before going on vacation for their anniversary. It would be the first time they'd actually gone on vacation since Yugi had ended up in the hospital.

His heart still clenched in fear every time he thought about that. No one had noticed that Yugi had been ill. His fist clenched in anger. He had almost attacked Honda and Anzu in the emergency waiting room. They hadn't been spending much time with Yugi since they had graduated. If Ryou hadn't been there when Yugi had collapsed… He took a deep breath. The white haired Brit had been there and Yugi was ok. It had been a few months and even though the small boy still needed plenty of rest, he was healing well. Jou closed his eyes, leaning against the headboard. As bad as he felt, Yami had felt worse. He had become even more protective of his other half after Yugi's grandfather died. Yugi's darker half hadn't realized that Yugi's condition was serious. He had simply taken the diminutive Duelist's word that he had cramps.

Jou sighed, running a hand through his hair. Yugi was fine and Seto wouldn't forget his promise. The chestnut haired young man knew that Jou'd never forgive him for forgetting this event. Getting frustrated, Jou got up and after a quick trip to the bathroom, went to go see what was taking his lover so long. He managed to navigate the dark upper floor with only a few minor mishaps and, after checking to be sure that Mokuba was still asleep, he slipped downstairs.

When a quick search didn't turn up his missing lover, Jou started getting worried. Seto would never have simply walked out. He leaned against a wall, fighting back his doubts and pain. A soft noise caused him to blink and attracted him to the one room he hadn't bothered to check.

Seto looked up when Jou pushed open double doors of the library. "Did I wake you?" he asked softly, for some reason not wanting to break the stillness of the night.

Jou shook his head. "I woke up and you weren't there." He frowned, walking over to his lover. "What was so important that it couldn't wait until morning?" To the blonde's amusement, his lover blushed.

"I…" Seto hesitated before clicking a button and moving out of the way so that Jou could sit down.

Jou raised an eyebrow. Seto may not speak much, but he'd never seen him at a loss for words. He slid into the warm chair and blinked in surprise as he finally saw what his lover had been looking at. He grimaced before looking up at Seto. "Sorry. I know I shouldn't let things like this get to me, but … damn it, she pissed me off."

Seto wrapped his arms around Jou from behind. "It's alright, she pissed me off too."

Jou blinked, looking up at his lover in surprise.

"Scroll down." Sapphire eyes watched as the screen rolled and he smirked when he felt Jou stiffen in surprise.

"Seto…" He hadn't seen that screen name before, but it was obvious that "AisuRyu" was the taller man holding him tight.

"Go ahead," he encouraged, leaning down to lay his head on Jou's shoulder so he could watch his expression.

Jou looked up at Seto again, wondering just what his lover had wrote. Seto hated chat rooms and message boards, so why had he bothered to do this? Wordlessly, he clicked on the most recent comment. His breath caught as he started to read.

_After reading your comment, I can't help but feel sorry for you. The story you've told is incomplete and somewhat incorrect. Yes, soul mates were originally one soul, but these two halves were not separated into male and female. Gender meant nothing for a long time. _

_In fact, the origin of the hatred of homosexuality has been traced by some experts to the beginnings of Christianity. Also, a soul may be reborn several times and it is not always born into a body with the same gender it had originally. For example, one woman who claimed to recall six past lives claims that in four of them she was male. _

_By declaring that your soul mate must be male, you have severely limited your search for your other half. So, if anyone would be guilty of possibly denying their soul mate love, it would be you. Love is love, regardless of the gender involved. It's the soul you're supposed to love anyway, not the body._

_I have found my soul mate, and yes, he has the same gender I do. No, the beginning of our relationship wasn't perfect, but he is the perfect compliment to my soul. In a little over a week, we are going to celebrate our one-year anniversary and I wouldn't give up any of the time we've known each other, even the times we were fighting, for anything. _

Jou blinked the tears from his eyes and turned to look at Seto. He opened his mouth, but shut it when nothing came out. Seto smirked before claiming Jou's lips in an intense kiss. The blond wrapped his arms around his lover's neck, deepening the kiss. After a moment Seto pulled away enough to whisper in Jou's ear. "Happy anniversary, Jou."

Jou chuckled, hugging Seto tight. "You give me some of the best presents."

"Hmm…" Seto nibbled on Jou's earlobe before sucking on it, causing Jou to arc his back into the sensations.

"Love you," Jou gasped, his hands burying themselves in chestnut hair.

Moments later, pale naked forms twined together on the library floor. Jou whimpered as Seto nipped and sucked at one of his nipples. "Please," he managed to gasp out.

Sapphire eyes raised to stare into lust clouded chocolate. Abruptly, Seto flipped them over, putting Jou on top. "It's a little early, but I think it's the perfect time to give you your present."

Jou's eyes went wide. Seto had never allowed him to top him before. "Seto…"

A rare smile of genuine happiness lit Seto's face. "Almost a year ago, you gave yourself to me for the first time. I trust you, Jou." He pulled his lover down for another kiss.

The blond moaned, shuddering. He knew that Seto trusted him. He had to, to have allowed Jou to get that close to him, but he had never said it before. He pulled back, panting as he stared into Seto's eyes. He was drawn from his shock when a small tube of lube was pressed into his hand.

"Go on," the brunette encouraged him softly.

As their breath slowed to normal an hour later, Seto stroked Jou's hair. The blond looked up with a worried look. "You ok?"

Seto smirked. "More than ok."

Jou grinned in response before yawning. "We'd better get up to bed. Don't wanna scar Mokuba for life."

Seto snorted. "I don't think either of us are ready for the stairs just yet."

Jou sat up, frowning down at his lover. "I thought you said you were ok."

The brunette rolled his eyes before pulling his lover back down. "I am, my legs just feel like rubber right now."

Jou snickered. "That good, huh?"

"Mind blowing," his lover clarified with a sultry smile.

The blond gave him a wicked grin and claimed his lips in a slow, emotion-filled kiss. Jou sighed softly, laying his had on Seto's chest. "I guess we can rest here for a while."

When Mokuba came down a few hours later he was surprised to find the library doors open. After peeking in, he closed the doors quietly, a dark blush staining his cheeks. He stared at the door for a moment before running up to his room, coming back with a door hanger he'd picked up on their last vacation. He hung it on the door with a grin before heading off to breakfast.

The strip of cardboard hung from the antique handle with a picture of a large, menacing dragon. Just below it's open mouth, the sign declared in old English style text, "Do Not Disturb, Sleeping Dragons Have Been Known To Be Cranky."


End file.
